SourceGaming Presents: Marvel vs. Capcom 4

With the recent news that Disney will be licensing out its properties to other game developers to use, a resurgence in support for a new entry to Capcom’s long running and well respected fighting game series; Marvel vs. Capcom soon followed. To say that this is an exciting prospect is an understatement! Following our articles for a Konami-Smash Bros. themed roster and a Nintendo Kartroster, TheAnvil, Spazzy_D, and Nantendo, this time joined by Wolfman_J decided to go full throttle figuring out a perfectly balanced roster for Marvel vs. Capcom 4!Please note that this is presented as more of a wishlist, and less of a prediction. After all, it is reported that Marvel have prohibited use of its X-Men and Fantastic Four characters from use in games in the near future. A hypothetical Marvel vs. Capcom 4 would likely be very different.Without further adieu, TheAnvil, Spazzy_D, Nantendo and Wolfman_J present to you their vision of Marvel vs. Capcom 4!!!The picture pays homage to the traditional select screen layout of the first 3 MvC games, and more typically using the yellow outlined boxes found in the first 2 games. The comic book pages you find on the left and right were inspired by Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3’s character select screen! We initially settled on 66 characters, being a significant mark-up from the high point of 56 (MvC2), but pushed the boat out a little further by including a single clone on each side. Interestingly enough, UMvC3 was to have 58 characters initially, though scheduling of releases cut that to 50. Each character is arranged opposite his or her ‘rival’ character, as well as being arranged by series for easy navigation.

Rivals List

MARVEL

CAPCOM

REASONING

Thor

vs

Amaterasu

Gods.

Captain America

vs

Captain Commando

Both are Captain’s of their respective company.

Wolverine

vs

Strider

Old rivals (MvC1), both spent time in Japan learning their fighting skills. Both have mysterious pasts.

Learnt their craft from polar opposites, Gypsies and Monks respectively.

Dr. Doom

vs

M. Bison

Both are dictators.

Ghost Rider

vs

Phoenix Wright

Both pass distinct forms of judgement on villains.

Thanos

vs

Arthur

Arthur sets off to save the princess from Astaroth, a very similar power’d character to Thanos.

Rocket Raccoon

vs

Felyne

Both are small, super powered mammals.

Hulk

vs

Hoover

Two characters with great intelligence that are hindered by a handicap. One is a baby, one transforms into a creature with the mental capacity of a baby.

Iron Man

vs

Morrigan

Sexual Promiscuity, both are irresistible to the opposite sex.

MODOK

vs

Megaman

Both futuristic Robots.

Spider-man

vs

Frank West

Photographers who put themselves in great peril in order to get the scoop.

Storm

vs

Felicia

Both orphaned as children.

Magneto

vs

Tron Bonne

They each command armies.

Cyclops

vs

Ryu

Old rivals (SFxT, MSHvsSF). They are the icons of X-Men and Street Fighter, who set these crossover games in motion.

Black Widow

vs

Brent Turner

Both are special agents.

Scarlet Witch

vs

Tessa

Witches.

Machine Man

vs

Nathan Spencer

Each possess machine parts.

Squirrel Girl

vs

Zack & Wiki

Share the assistance of a smaller creature to help them in their adventures.

Black Panther

vs

Mike Haggar

The royalty of a Prince vs. an elected official of government.

Blade

vs

Demitri Maximoff

The Vampire vs. The Vampire Hunter

Winter Soldier

vs

Leon Kennedy

Both have worked for the President, and saved them, or their loved ones.

Ms. Marvel

vs

Chun-Li

Female law enforcement, they both aim to save innocent lives.

Carnage

vs

Jack Krauzer

Both are possessed by an entity that makes them even more murderous than they were before.

Daredevil

vs

Ryu (BOF)

Ryu is a member of an ancient Dragon Clan, Daredevil is always at odds with another Clan, the Hand.

Devil Dinosaur

vs

Regina

Dinosaur vs. Dinosaur hunter

Silver Surfer

vs

Fang

Two men obsessed. One with finding his home, the other with protocol while running the Shadoloo.

Howard The Duck

vs

Viewtiful Joe

Quack Fu vs. Henshin A-Go-Go, baby!

Loki

vs

Lou & Siva

Lou and Siva save their world by defeating an Evil God, Gaia. Loki is an evil God.

Nightcrawler

vs

Firebrand

Blue demon vs. Red demon

Ultimate Spider- man

vs

Sean Matsuda

Ethnic minorities that have lived in the shadow of the original, as something of a ‘sidekick’.

Doc Ock

vs

Asura

They each have 4 extra metal arms.

Characters were typically chosen with a set of principles in mind, these include:–MvC veterans. There are 3 MvC games, each with a selection of characters that are weren’t in the other two games. How important are certain characters to MvC as a whole?–What’s probable ( currently relevant). Marvel was heavily basing their choices on marketing for MvC3 particularly, but they actually did the same for each version. MvC1 featured the Onslaught storyline which had recently been a huge deal in the years preceding it, and MvC2’s new Marvel characters were Marrow and Cable, both relevant to the comics at the time of production. A more recent example would be Rocket Raccoon and Hawkeye, who were chosen for MvC3 to help promote future movies.–Think outside the box (obscurity). Each game has had its share of surprising and obscure characters, chosen for their bizarre nature, and for their moveset potential. Good examples include Shuma-Gorath, Nemesis and Pheonix.–Look at the characters that fans really wanted.This Japanese, and this Western poll were great sources in this regard.You can read below our thought processes and tidbits behind the characters that were selected. We initially had many characters, including both veterans and newcomers who unfortunately couldn’t make the cut, and some who were a stone throw’s away from being included in the roster.

MarvelThe Avengers: Characters included: Hulk, Ms. Marvel, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, Squirrel Girl, The Machine Man.Although nearly every Superhero has his or her own series, they occasionally crossover to form a super team known as ‘The Avengers’. Heroes like Captain America, Iron Man and Spider-Man have all frequently been a part of the Avengers but as these heroes all have multiple characters from their respective franchises in Marvel Vs. Capcom 4, this section is devoted to those that only have one character or those that are exclusively a part of the Avengers.

Of the veterans the only one in this category is the Hulk. Big, green and angry, the Hulk plays a lot like he does in previous iterations of MvC. On to the newcomers, the next major Avenger with only one fighter to their series is Ms. Marvel, a.k.a. tThe current Captain Marvel: Carol Danvers. With a movie coming out, she seems like a prime character that Marvel would hope to push in the future.

Next we have two characters who have already appeared in the movies as the Avengers’ two bad ass females. Sporting polar opposite powers, Black Widow is a martial arts pro and the ultimate spy who seems fit to fight toe-to-toe with the some of the best heroes. Scarlet Witch is a psychic who can mess with people’s minds and chooses to fight from a distance with psychic blasts. Both are in the current Avengers and have seen a huge boost in popularity recently.

The final two are not very common Avengers but have been associated with them in some form. First we have the ever-amazing Squirrel Girl whose own serialization has seen massive success and this makes her prime for her fighting game debut. Lastly we have TheMachine Man – well, officially the Machine Man. Drunk, spiteful, and perpetually surly, robot Aaron Stack is a collection of seemingly endless and random limbs, tools, and devices, all of which make him a designer’s dream for moves and abilities. –Nantendo, Wolfman_J

The X-Men: Characters included: Wolverine, Storm, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Magneto, Deadpool.The X-Men, along with Street Fighter are truly the pioneers of the entire legacy of Marvel vs. Capcom. X-Men vs. Street Fighter was the very first time Capcom and Marvel characters were able to do battle with each other. The success of the X-Men only fighting game; Children of the Atom led to the genius idea of pairing the two companies together in a move that created one of the most beloved gaming experiences of all time.

While the X-Men have fallen by the wayside, and Marvel are reluctant to promote them due to film rights, we could not ignore their legacy when selecting the roster.
Nearly every X-Men character we chose were veterans. X-Men staples Wolverine and Storm and Cyclops. The latter who makes his grand return after missing MvC3. Additionally we have Magneto, the master of magnetism and the X-Men’s main villain and of course; Deadpool, the merc with the mouth!Our sole newcomer (aside from Scarlet Witch, who is kind of divided between X-Men and Avengers in terms of which series she hails from) is Nightcrawler. Eternally popular, he is arguably the most important X-Men character who has not yet been playable in one of these games! His main powers include line-of-sight teleportation, and inhuman acrobatic ability. –TheAnvilSpider-Man: Characters included: Spider-man, Carnage, Doctor Octopus, Ultimate Spider-man.Spider-man is one of Marvel’s most prolific franchises, and thanks to the movie rights reverting back to Marvel we could expect a healthy dose of its characters entering the fray in Marvel vs. Capcom 4.Our sole veteran, Spider-man is an all-star of Marvel, you couldn’t even think of having the game without him! Our new blood includes Carnage, an evil psychopath fused with a symbiote! Doc Ock, a criminal genius scientist with 4 metal limbs fused to his spine who was believed to have been cut from MvC3. Finally we have Ultimate Spider-man, otherwise known as Miles Morales who is the sole Marvel clone character. –TheAnvil

Iron ManCharacters included: Iron Man, M.O.D.O.K..Iron Man is, unsurprisingly, a character we wanted to include in this game from the start. Iron Man has a long and storied history in the Marvel universe and has been part of the Marvel Vs. Capcom franchise from the very beginning. In addition to this, his portrayal in the Marvel Cinematic Universe by Robert Downey Jr. has made him a household name, which means he isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. One of Iron Man’s most prolific villains, M.O.D.O.K also makes his return from Marvel vs. Capcom 3. M.O.D.O.K. really embodies the spirit of Marvel vs. Capcom through his wacky moveset and unusual anatomy! That being said, Iron Man as a franchise didn’t have too many other possible character additions. War Machine was briefly considered as a clone, but it was ultimately decided that other characters could fill that roll in more interesting ways. — Spazzy, TheAnvil

The Fantastic Four:Characters included: Dr. Doom, The Silver Surfer.It seems odd that the Fantastic Four team members never seem to manage securing a spot in any Marvel vs. Capcom roster, but we’ve inadvertently continued that tradition. Dr. Doom, the metal-faced foe of the Fantastic 4 is not only one of the most prolific Marvel villains, he’s one of the most popular Marvel vs. Capcom characters thanks to his hidden missile assist attack. He’s quite frankly crucial to competitive gameplay.Also entering the fray is the herald of Galactus turned hero, The Silver Surfer. Who uses the powers cosmic bestowed on him by Galactus to save planet after planet from his wrath. Though he was denied access to Marvel vs. Capcom 3 due to difficulty in implementing his board, a similar problem initially kept the Ghost Rider out of the vanilla version of MvC3, and was later rectified in time for him to be included in Ultimate. –TheAnvil

ThorCharacters included: Thor, Loki.Thor is an interesting character. A founding Avenger, Thor (much like DC’s Wonder Woman) serves as the team’s connection to mythological worlds and concepts. While this obviously includes Asgard and the nine realms, Thor has also crossed over with many other pantheons including but not limited to the Greek and Shinto gods.

Something to take note of is that Thor is both the name of a character (Thor Odinson) and a title bestowed upon anyone that is “worthy” enough to lift the enchanted hammer Mjolnir. Due to this, several individuals have been “Thor” in Marvel Comic’s history. The most recent and current recipient of the title is Jane Foster, the female Thor. While it might make some sense to include her as the Thor in a Marvel vs. Capcom game, we felt that the fact that classic Thor was still appearing in the movies and other media adaptations gave that version the edge.

Additionally, Loki the villainous half-brother of Thor finally enters the fight. Loki has received a huge amount of prominence from Marvel in recent years, greatly helped by his prominent roles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Loki boasts many powers that would make him an interesting fighter, these include teleportation and illusion casting. His staff also gives him an interesting tool for combat! — Spazzy, TheAnvil

Captain America:Characters Included: Captain America, The Winter Soldier.No surprise here, the Avengers’ tent-pole hero’s always got a spot reserved. His shield tosses and superserum-enhanced pummeling are a staple, both for Marvel Comics and Marvel vs. Capcom, and with the Avengers enjoying the most popularity it’s ever had there’s no way he’s staying out of the fight. However, he’ll also be joining this fight alone; no Falcon or Baron Zemo, sadly. We at Source Gaming also doubt he’ll use his current incarnation as an apparent ersatz Neo-Nazi. Just, you know, a guess there.

In addition to the Captain, The Winter Soldier takes his long awaited spot! The Winter Soldier, formerly Captain America’s close friend and sidekick, Bucky Barnes was similarly frozen, and revived… Only upon his revival, he was no longer Bucky, but was programmed by his captors to be the dastardly soviet assassin, The Winter Soldier. – Wolfman_J, TheAnvil

Howard the Duck:Character Included: Howard the DuckThe only character agreed on by every voter here. Created by Steve Gerber and artist Val Mayerik, he’s is an example of what happens when Marvel’s friendly, controlling corporate attitude is stripped away entirely. A duck from outer space, presidential candidate, and one time Iron Man, Howard is a stranger both on earth and within Marvel’s continuity, something with which he’s painfully aware – in some respects, he’s more subversive than Deadpool with how he actively tries to disrupt the company. Perverted and nasty, he’s a dark parody of classic cartoon characters long before that was ever in vogue. He can function as both a joke character and a legitimate contender, thanks to his unique martial art “Quack Fu.” – Wolfman_J

Devil Dinosaur:Character Included: Devil DinosaurYou know who’s cooler than any superhero? A DINOSAUR THAT’S ALSO A DEVIL! One of Jack Kirby’s characters after returning to Marvel (where, at DC Comics, he wrote the Fourth World Saga and Kamandi), he’s similar to many of “the King’s” contemporary heroes: a creature primordial in strength and design, and almost “pure” in its savagery amidst a volatile world. Devil Dinosaur is literally that – a giant, powerful dinosaur that stomps around in Dinosaur Times and hangs out with Moon Boy and later Moon Girl. He doesn’t have dreams or aspirations; he’s literally just a giant, awesome beast. And that’s what we’re looking for here. Forget flashy powers or anything like that; this is a character of pure power. – Wolfman_J

Doctor StrangeCharacters included: Doctor Strange, Shuma-Gorath.Doctor Strange, Marvel Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme, makes his return in our hypothetical Marvel vs. Capcom 4 roster. The Doctor is a classic Steve Ditko creation whose personality and purpose were provided by Stan Lee. He is an absolute staple of Marvel media, and with a movie on the horizon, I can not see Marvel not wanting his inclusion in this game. His magic based move set also helps differentiate him from the vast majority of the other playable Marvel fighters.

Along for the ride is Shuma-Gorath, an eldritch abomination that has appeared in the last two Marvel vs. Capcom games. While Shuma-Gorath might not be the most important Marvel character, he is amongst the most unique. He also doubled as a Conan villain when Marvel owned the license to that property…that’s gotta count for something. — Spazzy

Blade:Character Included: Blade.Blade’s an…odd choice, admittedly. He’s small time, and as a violent vampire hunter is far from the attitude Marvel’s been cultivating from their movies. But that’s just it; he was their original success in film. A daywalker – the son of a human woman and a vampire – Blade first appeared in Gene Colan’s Tomb of Dracula, as just one of the eponymous lord’s many foes. But the real story of Blade was a film trilogy whose second installment by Guillermo del Toro remains one of the best comics movies to this day (incidentally, all three scripts and the third’s direction were done by current DC Comics film scribe David Goyer. Comics are like that). The film excised everything but his birth, training by fully human partner Whistler, and hatred for vampires. Far surpassing the original design in popularity, the movie incarnation quickly became the definitive one, folding back into the comics in a way that would predate Marvel’s slavish devotion to corporate synergy. He’s got all kinds of fun weapons too, especially the “glaive,” the most ridiculous knife ever advertised in Nineties weapons magazines. – Wolfman_J

Guardians of the GalaxyCharacters included: Rocket Raccoon, Thanos.Guardians of the Galaxy is a super popular and relevant franchise…and that is super weird to long time comic book fans such as myself. The Guardians have a long history in comics dating all the way back to 1969, but they have been the stars of poor selling and niche titles for the majority of that time. What a difference a hit movie makes. James Gunn’s 2014 Guardians of the Galaxy has elevated the property to “A” status, and as such the franchise’s character got a hard look from us when formulating this roster.

Rocket Raccoon, the foul mouthed raccoon tech genius, actually made the roster of Marvel vs. Capcom 3 before the release of the Guardians movie. As a result, many players did not know who the character was at the time. Now that he is among the most popular characters in the Marvel universe, his return in any sequels is basically assured. Due to the limited number of roster spots, Rocket is the only team member to appear in this game. Star Lord was heavily considered, but it was decided that other newcomers could be far more unique then he likely would be.

The mad titan, Thanos, returns to the series after his hiatus in Marvel vs. Capcom 3. The character adds another villain to the game, and his role in the upcoming Avengers: Infinity Wars movie(s) make him a character that Marvel will want to promote. While he is technically not just a Guardians villain, his connection to the cosmic side of Marvel led us to classify him as such. — Spazzy

Ghost Rider:
Characters Included: Ghost Rider
Many Riders have taken on he name, The Ghost Rider, but perhaps none more known than Johnny Blaze. The man who sold his soul to Satan himself to save the life of his father. When in the presence of evil at night, his body becomes engulfed in flame, and his head becomes a flaming skull. With his trusty motorcycle, the Ghost Rider is always a welcome addition. As long as he isn’t Nicolas Cage. –TheAnvil

Daredevil:Characters Included: DaredevilMatt Murdock, the superhero who cannot see. Daredevil is widely popular Marvel character, who has more relevance than ever thanks to his highly eponymous acclaimed TV series. Daredevil was blinded by a radioactive substance falling from a truck while pushing a man to safety. The radioactivity gave him a radar like ability, and this, combined with his incredible acrobatic ability, and his trusty club, the man with no fear is a great addition to any roster! –TheAnvil

CapcomAce AttorneyCharacters Included: Phoenix Wright.A unique and popular Ccapcom character who debuted in Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3. Phoenix Wright isn’t your traditional fighter, choosing to fight criminals using the justice system rather than his fists. This made him an enjoyable and unique different fighter from the cast. With more games coming out still, he is both relevant and well-liked so he will be staying. –Nantendo

Devil May CryCharacters Included: Dante.While the Devil May Cry series is a popular Capcom IP that saw three characters included in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, this time only Dante is returning. This is primarily due to the lack of any new Devil May Cry titles outside of HD re-releases. To make matters worse, the latest title was the prequel/reboot that saw a new Dante and& Vergil take the stage. The Dante we have chosen to use is the original as he is both the most popular, iconic and the one used in titles such as Project X Zone as well as and the anime. DMC Dante will be included as a special costume however. –Nantendo

Lost PlanetCharacters Included: Bren Turner.Lost Planet was a popular title in the last generation and even saw a character added in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom. Yet, I imagine most of you do not know who Bren Turner even is. This hot-blooded teen is a new transfer student from E.D.N. II and a skilled VS pilot. He is also the main character of the Japan-only Nintendo 3DS and& PS3 title E.X. Trooper, a spin-off to the main Lost Planet series and its most recent title. Not only is he a stand-out character but his design and abilities fit perfectly for the vs. Capcom series of games. –Nantendo

Monster HunterCharacters Included: Felyne.The Monster Hunter series has a special situation with the vs. Capcom series. In an interview, one of the creators of the Monster Hunter franchise stated that he did not want any Monster Hunter material to appear in crossovers which is why we have not seen anything from this goliath of a series in previous MvC games. However, in recent years we have seen many crossovers both within the Monster Hunter franchise itself and outside of it. The most notable thing with all of these crossovers appears to be that they involve the Felynes rather than the Hunters. So, it is our believe that a Felyne character for Marvel vs Capcom 4 is fair game. –Nantendo

Viewtiful JoeCharacters Included: Viewtiful Joe.Returning from Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, Viewtiful Joe is a popular Capcom star that does not need to be cut. His series stays stagnant with its representation however, as the series also has not changed at all since the last vs. Capcom game. –Nantendo

StriderCharacters included: Strider Hiryu.Strider Hiryu is a cyber ninja. That should pretty much be all the justification that’s needed for this character’s inclusion. Just as a reminder, the character IS a Strider (a high tech clan of ninja’s from a dystopian future) whose name is Hiryu. Hiryu is the youngest Strider ever to reach the elite special A-Class rank. He is a master of plasma weapons and his skill with his light sword, cypher, is unmatched.

Hiryu has a long history with the “Capcom Vs.” games, going all the way back the the very first Marvel vs. Capcom. His unique fighting style and significant place in Capcom history made him an important inclusion in this roster. Still, the general popularity of his franchise made it unlikely that we would add another character from Strider. –SpazzyCaptain Commando:Characters Included: Captain Commando, Baby Head.Finally making his return after sitting out the 3rd iteration of Marvel vs. Capcom, Captain Commando was without a doubt one of the most popular missing veterans. A staple of the Marvel vs. Capcom series, having debuted in the very first game; Clash of Super Heroes, Captain Commando was actually the very first official Capcom-mascot.In addition to the Captain, making his fighting game debut is his often-teased comrade, Baby Head! Baby Head is a super-genius baby who fights using a mechanic suit, offering him a huge amount of potential for his moveset. Baby Head made notable appearances in the first 2 Marvel vs. Capcom games, as well as cameo appearances in games such as Tatsunoko vs. Capcom. –TheAnvilDead Rising:Characters Included: Frank West.Dead Rising has become one of the most noteable Capcom franchises in recent years, so it’s only natural that it would retain a playable character in Marvel vs. Capcom 4. Despite the newer games shifting attention away from its initial protagonist, Frank West, and towards newer characters such as Chuck Greene and Nick Ramos. Frank is very much still the symbol of the Dead Rising franchise, having been reintroduced due to high demand in games such as Case West and Dead Rising 2: Off The Record as well as in Dead Rising 3’s DLC.Frank, who enjoys covering wars ya know, already boasts a hefty cross-over resume. Featuring in games such as Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, Lost Planet and of course, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. –TheAnvilThree Wonders:Characters Included: Lou & Siva.Three Wonders is a relatively unknown mixed-genre Arcade game released in 1991. What made Three Wonders so special is that it lived up to its name. To call it a game doesn’t really do it justice, as it is in fact 3 games in one. The first game, Midnight Wanderers features two characters, named Lou & Siva, on a quest to find a magical Chariot, and to save Lou’s girlfriend Sena who has been turned into stone by the evil God, Gaia.The events of the story that unfold in Midnight Wanderers are continued on in Chariot. Lou and Siva use the chariot obtained in Midnight Wanderers to this time battle Lars in a shoot-em-up game!Three Wonders has had several references and appearances in other Capcom games. Lou & Firestorm appear as a special assist character in Marvel vs. Capcom 1 and Gaia, The Terror Twins and Don & Pull appear in the Japan only game Capcom World 2. Additionally Shiba Shintaro from Cannon Spike was based on Siva!The huge array of different weapons, abilities and buddies (otherwise known as options) Firestorm, Chilly and Corkscrew make Lou & Siva one of the most compelling characters in Capcom’s catalogue!Street Fighter:Characters Included: Ryu, M. Bison, Chun-Li, F.A.N.G, Sean Matsuda.Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom go hand in hand. In fact if you want to go back far enough, MvC’s true origins lie in Street Fighter and the X-Men. As Capcom’s token fighting game franchise, Street Fighter is healthily represented in each iteration of Marvel vs. Capcom, and Marvel vs. Capcom 4 should be no different.Veterans we chose to include were obviously Ryu, who is Capcom’s current mascot, as well as staple characters Chun-Li and M. Bison. The former of whom, has been playable in every MvC game!F.A.N.G. was selected as a newcomer to represent Street Fighter V. His off-the-wall personality and moveset lend itself perfectly for the whackiness of a vs. series game. We also chose Sean Matsuda as the sole ‘clone’ character for Capcom’s side! –TheAnvilBreath of FireCharacters included: RyuStreet Fighter isn’t the only Capcom franchise to include a noteworthy Ryu. Breath of Fire for the Super Nintendo is amongst the best JRPGs on a system that is known for having many shining examples of the genre. The series went on to spawn five sequels, the most recent being a mobile game in February of this year. While the plots of the games in the series are not exactly connected, the main protagonist of most games is a blue haired member of the dragon clan named Ryu. Ryu, having the blood of a dragon inside of him, can morph into a dragon for various attacks. Think Super Smash Bros. Corrin…. but in a Marvel game. –Spazzy

Cyberbots:Characters Included: Devilotte.Cyberbots isn’t the most well known, or even notable Capcom franchise. It was a spin-off Arcade fighting game of Capcom’s Armoured Warriors, released in 1995. Without a new entry in over 2 decades, its characters are really all that has survived the passage of time. Instead of Jin Saotome, who is incredibly popular and demanded in his own right. We decided that the villainess pirate Devilotte should finally get her chance to shine. Having appeared previously as a playable character in Super Puzzle Fighter II, she has made many cameo appearances in other games such as; Onimusha Soul, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and of course as an Assist character in the first Marvel vs. Capcom.Thematically, her moveset would be similar to Doronjo from Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, using her lackeys Dave and Xavier to assist her in combat! –TheAnvilMega Man:Characters Included: Mega Man X, Tron Bonne.When planning out the roster, the questions wasn’t if Mega Man characters would be included, but rather how many characters the franchise would have. Mega Man has long been one of Capcom’s most successful and iconic brands. The blue bomber himself was the de facto mascot for the company in the 80’s, and the original franchise is regarded as the absolute pinnacle of console platforming. It should also be mentioned that every Capcom Vs. game, with the exception of Capcom Vs. SNK, has included a character from the series.

While the original Mega Man was originally our roster, it was eventually decided to give Mega Man X the nod this time around. This would give us a unique and highly requested newcomer while still honoring the classic Mega Man platformers. Tron Bonne was also added, as she serves as a good representative of another branch of Mega Man while also being a fan favorite. –Spazzy

Dino Crisis:Characters Included: Regina.Despite a rather lengthy sabbatical, Dino Crisis has managed to stay at the forefront of the minds of Capcom fans for many years. It’s not hard to see why, its initial run was comparable in success to Resident Evil, and Dino Crisis 1 remains one of the top selling Capcom games of all time.The main protagonist of the first 2 Dino Crisis games, Regina, a special agent of S.O.R.T. makes perfect sense to enter the fray with her wide arsenal of weapons! –TheAnvil

Zack & WikiCharacters included: Zack & WikiEvery Marvel Vs. game needs a few obscure characters to appease the hardcore crowd. Zack & Wiki, stars of 2007’s Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure on the Wii,would be just that sort of addition. Zack, a pirate searching for treasure, and Wiki, his shape shifting companion, star in a unique and critically acclaimed puzzle game. The very nature of the game would result in a character with a very different sort of move set, which makes them perfect for this game. –Spazzy

Power Stone:Characters Included: Rouge.Power Stone, a 3D arena fighter was initially released for Arcade Units in 1999, and was later ported to the SEGA Dreamcast along with its sequel Power Stone 2. Even though Power Stone has seen nothing but a port of its 2 games to the PSP in the last decade, it still retains a huge fanbase. Rouge, a gypsy who specializes in fire attacks is one of the key Power Stone characters. According to director Ryota Niitsuma, Rouge actually narrowly missed being included on Tatsunoko vs. Capcom! –TheAnvilDarkstalkers:Characters Included: Morrigan, Felicia, Demitri.Darkstalkers nearly always has a prominent role in Capcom’s cross over games and it’s easy to see why. Despite only having roughly 2 dozen characters in its repertoire, they’re so unique and memorable that they’re perfect for fleshing out rosters! Despite no new game in quite some time, it’s not through lack of trying internally at Capcom, and Ryota Niitsuma himself is a self-professed fan. Characters such as Jon Talbain and Donovan Baine were strongly considered for Marvel vs. Capcom 3.Morrigan the succubus, and Felicia the half-ct return as staples of the Marvel vs. Capcom series, and we chose a newcomer in Demitri. A vampire. Demitri was not permitted by Marvel for use in MvC3 due to his “Midnight Bliss” moves, however we believe it would be very easy to include him without him being able to use Midnight Bliss. –TheAnvil

Resident Evil:Characters Included: Leon Kennedy, Jack KrauserWhile Resident Evil 6 got an achingly deserved shellacking from critics, Capcom’s zombie and other monster killing horror/action series remains one of their few reliable franchises for commercial success. Its iconic, with a long running film series, multiple installments on almost every console out there, and a deep love for its best installments. Possibly the biggest of those was Resident Evil 4, the turning point that led to its current style of gameplay and storytelling, so it makes sense to bring in two newcomers for that game. Cop turned secret agent Leon Kennedy has the same kinds of powers held by previous MvC characters like Jill and Chris, while secret agent turned cult mercenary Krauser can grow a giant plant knife out of his arm, a bow, and cool little exploding robots. – Wolfman_J

Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins:Character Included: Prince Arthur, Firebrand.Arthur’s back, baby, and just as silly as ever! As always he’s a prince, Ghosts is traumatically difficult, and he’ll still have his breakable armor, heart print boxer shorts, and collection of spears. Arthur was one of the first fun surprises of Marvel vs Capcom 3, and a sign that the roster might reference odder or more cult heroes than previous installments. There’s no reason not to keep him around, especially since he’s got that awesome theme song.

In addition to Arthur, we really wanted to bring back Firebrand. Firebrand is a Red Arremer, a gargoyle like Demon from the Ghosts franchise. That is not the reason he should be in this game, however. Firebrand is the star of his own popular spin off series – the Gargoyle’s Quest games. This games deserve their own representation. Plus, he’s a super cool fire breathing demon. Who doesn’t want one of those in their fighting game? –Wolfman_J, Spazzy

Ōkami:Character included: AmaterasuA goddess of the sun and nature, the white wolf Amaterasu was one of the most wanted characters for 3, and despite Ōkami’s poor sales she has remained a beloved icon of the company. While she can fight well with shields, rosary beads, and swords, her most well known power is her wonderful Celestial Brush, which allows her to impact the world with the ease of a paintbrush on canvas. Fire, water, wind – it’s truly breathtaking. – Wolfman_J

Final Fight:Character Included: Mike HaggarWith a wrestling belt as a suspender and giant set of muscles, Mayor Haggar is the goofy hero of Final Fight, Capcom’s beat-em-up series that drew from contemporary action films. After his daughter is kidnapped by the Mad Gear Gang, he and various sidekicks go out and beat the snot out of anyone in their way. Similar to Street Fighter’s Zangief, he’d be the game’s biggest grappler and a tie to Capcom’s arcade past. – Wolfman_J

Bionic CommandoCharacter included: Nathan SpencerBionic Commando was one of the many idiosyncratic games Capcom was making during the NES era, a shooter/platformer in which a nameless “commando,” using a “bionic” cable arm, could swing from ledges with a fluidity equally useful for combat and exploration. While its 2009 revival, in which the hero was given giant, ridiculous dreadlocks, failed to set the world aflame the series’ name still has weight. While the possibilities of an extendo-limb may seem limited, Spencer’s mixing it up with hand to hand combat worked well in the last game. – Wolfman_J

Asura’s WrathCharacter included: Asura.
Asura’s Wrath is one of the most recent ‘new’ IPs developed by Capcom, having been released for Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2012. Asura’s Wrath is a beat-em-up game, with its lead protagonist, the demi-God Asura being the perfect candidate for a game such as Marvel vs. Capcom. The official Marvel vs. Capcom 3 twitter account even sent a tweet out acknowledging this. –TheAnvil

Red EarthCharacter included: Tessa.Red Earth is a fantasy-themed 2D fighting game released by Capcom in 1996. Similarly to Cyberbots, it has never really seen much in the way of sequels, although its characters have lived on through various cross-over appearances. Including such titles as the ill-received Capcom Fighting Jam, a cross-over game featuring Street Fighter, Red Earth and Darkstalkers characters, as well as the debut of fan-favorite Ingrid.

Tessa, the Witch, is one of four main characters from Red Earth. She’s certainly no stranger to cross over fighting games, having been included in SNK vs. Capcom: SVC Chaos!

If you enjoyed our roster feel free to bug us on the SourceGaming twitter, and on our own personal twitter pages about what you’d like to see us tackle next!Do you agree with our picks? Which characters would you like to see in Marvel vs. Capcom 4? Which rosters would you like us to tackle next? Let us know in the comments below!

From jolly old England, TheAnvil has a passion for video games that dates so far back it precedes his memory. His passion lies particularly and devoutly with Rare and Nintendo. He also creates a lot of sprites.

Miles Morales actually has quite a few abilities that Peter doesn’t such as camouflage and “venom” blasts. Most of your options were at the at the very least considered. Part of the issue with Venom is deciding on which version (I was pushing for Agent Venom, personally) as well as the fact that we set out to have a certain number of newcomers.

-Part of what we wanted to do with our roster was to keep it fresh, which meant limiting veterans slightly. If you look at MvC3, probably 2/3 of that roster were entirely new. And even extending that to Ultimate, 11/12 were new characters. It’s partly why we decided to go with X over the classic bomber.

-Akuma isn’t really cloney enough to justify being in a clone spot. Think how different he is to Ryu in MvC3. Besides we wanted the 2 clones to be new characters rather than veterans.

-As Spazzy said, Venom was on our list. I really wanted Brock back, but Carnage was something of a compromise in the end.

-Skrull was kind of a neat character, but he felt like a compromise nobody really asked for. I believe The Thing was quite high up in consideration in our talks though.

-Vergil was one of the final characters to get the axe, I believe he would have been on had we allowed ourselves another veteran on Capcom’s side. Though I actually thought it’d be a good idea to have Vergil over Dante when it came down to cutting one.

-Chris and Leon would be a little redundant, especially as we also had Regina on there. Because the RE characters very clearly had a RE5 theme, we opted for a RE4 theme this time (again, to keep the roster fresh). Krauser is actually very popular! His arm blade would make for an interesting moveset too, I think.

-We couldn’t really settle on which Spider-man to use, Peter or Miles. We decided in the end that it would make perfect sense to include Miles as a clone, with some unique abilities as an homage to the many clone characters in MvC1 such as Shadow Lady, Orange Hulk and Lilith Mode Morrigan.

Nice roster! Would you guys be willing to do like a Capcom-All Stars and a Marvel All-Stars someday though? It would be interesting to see what characters you would add to each side if the whole roster was made up of characters from each specific side only. 🙂

I also have some ideas for other brands I’d like to see get fighting game rosters from you guys one day! May I publish them?

This is an interesting topic you brought! I do wish to see MvC4 in some form, but probably will be going straight to the PS and Xbox as I don’t own those as I’m a Nintendo player. But I do like to see what characters would join the fight! I can’t think of any possible characters because there’s tons of them and how unique they can be, but here are some comments regarding to some parts of this article.

MARVEL SIDE:
– It’s odd to see Machine Man in this roster, but I did speculate to see Howard for this! And not to mention both characters are surviving partners from the Marvel Zombie series, and I would like to see how they can deal with other zombie survivors like Leon and Frank.
– Bringing Ultimate Spider Man is an interesting one to see too. Not just that he can be a clone (what I mean is something like Lucina or Dr. Mario in Smash) of the original Spider Man, but it’ll be the first time to bring somebody from the Ultimate Universe! At least we won’t see the terrible Superior Spider Man on this list.Or maybe adding Spidey’s female counterpart Spider Gwen could be another interesting part too.
– Blade is another character I want to see too. Although Deadpool is Dante’s rival, I think Blade can be his rival as well too as being the hunters of darkness. At least he could be a good candidate rather choosing the almost generic Punisher.
– I don’t know why you didn’t choose Daredevil for this roster. He could’ve been a rival of Pheonix Wright because they’re both lawyers.

CAPCOM SIDE:
– Felyne can be a great candidate from the Monster Hunter series. The series has been great with many crossovers with Nintendo games, even appearing as Capcom’s special guest character for Sonic and Mega Man’s Worlds Collide comic! But to be honest, I think bringing in its Animal Crossing-ish form can be something interesting as being a comical character of the roster. (lol)
– I would LOVE to see Frank West return, but I would wanna see other Dead Rising characters in this game too. One thing that can be interesting that Frank West can use regular weapons from the first game, while Chuck or Nick will mainly focus on Weapon Combos.
– I know we can’t bring too many Street Fighter characters to this game, but I would’ve wanna see characters who can represent that version. For example, Alex or Ibuki represents SFIII, while Crimson Viper or Juli represents SFIV, while Sakura or Dan represents SFAlpha. But yeah, I can’t be too greedy on this because bringing in too many SF characters won’t be fair enough. But Sean…I’d rather say Dan’s better. (lol)
– I do wish to see Mega Man coming back for this series, but I guess Mega Man X should have his chance for the first time. Zero is too popular for this case, but rather than bringing the original Zero, I think Mega Man Zero should be a good one instead, but a lot more improved than SvC with better movesets. I could wish to see Mega Man.EXE join too, but I guess X should be the best candidate at this point. Or maybe we could’ve seen Bass.EXE since he’s the most popular villain from the MMBN. Or maybe bring Roll instead? (lol)
– I would like to see Regina join in too, but I kinda didn’t understand why you’ve forgotten her first crossover appearance from Project X Zone’s precursor Namco X Capcom.
– Its an interesting thing you’ve brought Rouge from Power Stones, which I’ve also loved to see someone from that game to join MvC too! I could’ve wished to see Falkner and Ayame being in this game since they’re both main hero and heroine in the anime version, and I did heard that Rouge was planned to be in MvC3 but cancelled for some reasons. I would like to see anybody from Power Stones to join MvC as I still believe that game was great as being something similar to Smash Bros.
– Its sad you’ve rejected Hsien-ko from this roster. I’d definitely love to see her again as I love her. But who could we think of instead? I think bringing in Jedah or Pyro could’ve been interested for being the main villain of the Darkstalker series.
– I definitely LOVE to see Leon join in! I’ve always thought that power-kicking Leon should join MvC as I also wanted him to join Smash too. I don’t know about Krauser, but I guess he can be a good replacement of Wesker since he’s Leon’s enemy.
– I could understand why you didn’t add Onimusha here, because using the Japanese warlord doesn’t seem to work perfectly for this game, as we can say the same thing with Sengoku Basara as that game also uses Japanese warlords. Also using models of actual actors (Takeshi Kaneshiro and Jean Reno) may offend copyright as well too. BUT, I could’ve hoped you add in Rival Schools too because that was another popular fighting game. Maybe Batsu or Kyosuke could’ve been a good candidate as using that unique Team Up attack.

Daredevil is on the roster! Look at the sprites and rivals list…. we somehow left his write up off! Our apologies, this was a difficult article to coordinate. We’ll update with Daredevil’s write up soon.